Early Academics – Programs and Courses in the Concordia Academy

Concordia College was founded on Oct. 31, 1891. When Concordia first began, there were three courses of study that students could choose from: the Business Course, the Practical Course and the Classical Course. All three of these courses of study were two-year programs designed for, what was then, an academy. While students could choose their course of study, there were a number of courses that all students were required to take and additional courses that were not included in any of the main courses of study.

The Business Course, also known as the Commerical Course in later years, was by far the most popular of the three courses of study. In 1893, the first students graduated with eight from the Business Course and one from the Practical Course. In 1894, the second class graduated with 11 students in the Business/Commerical Course, five in the Practical Course and two in the Classical Course. The Business Course was seen by many to be the most profitable course of study for a young student to go into because it was the most widely applicable field to study. It was stated that “no matter in what occupation or profession a man may be found, a knowledge of bookeeping will always be helpful to him” because every profession needed some knowledge of how to keep its books. It included courses on bookkeeping, commerical law, business practice, arithmetic, English grammar, English reading, letter writing and penmanship. 

The Practical Course was the second most popular field of study in the first years of Concordia with the Classical Course coming in third. In the first round of graduates, the Practical Course had one student and the Classical Course had none. In 1894, when the second class of student graduated, there were five students in the Practical Course and two in the Classical Course. These two courses of study were similar in the subject matter they taught. The Practical Course included “English orthoepy, English grammer, English rhetoric, English literature, Norwegian grammar, Norwegian literature, arithmetic, algebra, geometry, descriptive and physical geography, U. S. history, civics, physiology, physics, botany, pedagogics and psychology.”^[1] The Classical Course included all of the courses mentioned in the Practical Course, “excepting pedagogics and psychology, this course offers general history, German, and ^Latin.”[2] The main difference between the two courses of study was that the Classical Course focused on the classical languages such as Latin and Greek.

On top of courses required for each course of study, there were a number of courses that each student was required to take each term. Each of the required courses was based in religious studies. The course catalog from the 1891-92 academic year states, “accordingly, every student is required to take part in religious instruction two hours a week, unless for valid reasons he is excused by the faculty.”^[3] Students were also required to attend all chapel exercises which were held daily at 8:45-9 a.m. and to attend church at least once every Sunday.

Additional courses of study were added into the curriculum within the five years of teaching at Concordia. These courses of study were known as the Shorthand and Typewriting Course which included classes on shorthand, typewriting, spelling, grammar, letter-writing, penmanship, debating and Bible. ^[4] The second course of study that was added to the curriculum was known as the Academic Course which included courses on things such as “reading arithmetic, geography, grammar, U. S. history, civics, algebra, physiology, composition, pedagogics, gymnastics, declamation, singing, orthoepy, spelling, Bible and debating.”^[5] These two courses were created for students with specific fields of study in mind such as stenographer and teacher, and within the first year students were already graduating with these courses of study.

In the 127 years that Concordia has been a teaching institution, the number of courses of study a student can choose from as increased exponentially. There are now more than 50 different majors and programs that students can pursue in their time at Concordia, with the option to pursue more than one if they so desire.

Contributed by Allison Bundy, archives associate, Concordia College Archives